Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Brief Tour of Downtown Indianapolis

Yes, I too was invited by James to guest blog over here at Nourishing Obscurity. Following a suggestion given to me in an e-mail, why not venture to downtown Indianapolis, Indiana and see Monument Circle, the Statehouse, and Military Park?

Indianapolis is the capital of Indiana and is the largest city in the state. There's plenty of events going on all year long but downtown is pretty cool.


Bank One (Chase) Tower

One of the first buildings you will see (if you come down from the north side) amongst the skyline is the Chase Tower (formerly Bank One). This tower can be seen in skyline postcards of Indianapolis.

Top of Building on Meridian Street

Downtown is where we have our tallest buildings.

Monument Circle from a distance

Monument Circle makes the main street, Meridian Street, into a roundabout. It is a gigantic statue devoted to fallen soldiers from the Spanish-American War of 1898 and the Civil War.

View One from the Circle

So, the last photo was of Monument Circle. Here we are standing on it, looking back at the street we were standing on when the previous photo was taken (Meridian Street).

View Over Fountain

Looking left and down you will see a fountain.

Stitched Backside Inscription

Going behind the Monument, we will find another inscription (dedicated to the soldiers who died in the Civil War). The fronstide inscription is dedicated to the fallen soldiers of the Spanish-American War of 1898 (Cuba's War of Independence).

Fountain from the Circle

Stepping down from the Monument, we can see a view of the fountain. Note the soldiers.

Backside of Bank One Tower

Remember the Chase Tower we saw at the very beginning? This is it from the backside.

The Statehouse

Heading to the street to the left of the Monument, we approach the Statehouse of Indiana, where the governor works. I had the good fortune of briefly meeting him about a month ago.

Steaming Storm Drain

Don't worry, it's normal :-) .

Closer to the Statehouse

Ah, here we are! The Statehouse!

Office in Statehouse

This is one of several offices on the main floor of the Statehouse. It's available only to authorized personnel.

Awning Skylight

Walking into the center of the main hall, we can see this gorgeous skylight which sadly didn't want to look as pretty as it does in person.

Justice and Liberty(Main Hall of Statehouse)

Justice and Liberty.
Here is one of the four two pairs of statues that grace this hall beneath the skylight.
Here are the others.

Agriculture and Commerce(Main Hall of Statehouse)

Agriculture and Commerce

Law and Oratory(Main Hall of Statehouse)

Law and Oratory

History and Art(Main Hall of Statehouse)

History and Art

Banner supporting the troops

Military Park, stitched

Here we are at Military Park, where the names (if known) of every single Medal of Honor winner, their conflicts, locations (if known), and ranks are etched into rows of glass. A few summers ago vandals came in thru here and broke one of the glass walls.

Designing, stitched

Here's an explanation of the Medal of Honor that can be found in Military Park. Simply put, the Medal of Honor is the highest medal that a member of the US armed forces can receive. I wish to apologize for the evident jerkiness of a few of these photos. I stitched them together earlier today (all of these photos were taken in 2005).

Congressional Decision
Bottom of Congressional Decision

Unknown Soldiers Holder

Every wall has its conflict labeled. For example, here is the wall for unknown soldiers. Some conflicts contain several walls of recipients.

Unknown Soldier Recepients

Here is one of their walls.

Indian Battle Recepients

These are some of the armed service members who died in our conquest of the West against the Indians.

Baghdad, OIF

Paul Smith was the first soldier to be awarded the Medal of Honor since Somalia. He died in the Battle of Baghdad during Operation: Iraqi Freedom. You all can look up his amazing story on the Internet, a true soldier indeed.

Canal near Walls

The canal that runs beside Military Park is popular with musicians, on occasion.

Foggy Skyline

Note the fog's effects of obscuring the Chase Tower (in the middle of the picture).

Canal heading towards Indianapolis

The canal runs back to the city's very center.



Now, we'll go briefly to a suburb of Indianapolis where we'll find a forest.



I leave you all looking at this creek, near the forest. I hope you enjoyed the tour!

5 comments:

  1. I did. I've never been anywhere near the state let alone the capital city, so had no idea what to expect.

    But it took a very long time for all those photos to load.

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  2. I did, too. Ever since I heard that songline, "And it don't rain in Indianapolis in the summertime", I've wanted to visit there! Now, in a way, I feel I have. Great pics.

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  3. I have only visited Indianopolis once, some nine years ago now.

    It was only a fairly brief visit, but I enjoyed it very much. Howver, my memory is soured by having gone to see "Meet Joe Black" in some downtown mall. As Brad Pitt declared his eternal love for Claire Forlani there was an odd sort of shaking in the cinema, and I peered round in the gloom to discover that the place was full of teenage girls sobbing uncontrollably into their hankies.

    I left at the end, deeply disgusted. I fear it has ruined Indianapolis for me for ever.

    (Now I think about it, how could I have been in an auditorium full of a couple of hundred teenage girls and not noticed? That's almost worse.)

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  4. Mr. Eugenides, that was probably Circle Center theater you're referring to (if it was in the mall). I personally prefer Clearwater at 82nd and Keystone myself. Nine years, huh? That would've made it 1998; I moved to the Indy area in '92. jmb, sorry about the long load time on the photos. I always choose too high of a resolution and quality. Glad you liked it welshcakes.

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  5. Brief Tour of Downtown Indianapolis

    You caused me nightmares resizing these photos, Matt but I'm damned glad you posted them. I've pored over and over them and find such things more than interesting.

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